Diffusers in wearable devices

ABSTRACT

Eyewear including an optical element, a controller, a support structure configured to support the optical element and the controller, light sources coupled to the controller and supported by the support structure, and a diffuser positioned adjacent to the light sources and supported by the support structure, the diffuser including microstructures that diffuse light emitted by the light sources in a radial anisotropic diffusion pattern or a prism-like diffusion pattern.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.17/675,292 filed on Feb. 18, 2022, which is a Continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 16/988,840 filed on Aug. 10, 2020, now U.S.Pat. No. 11,287,675, which is a Continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 16/446,704 filed on Jun. 20, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No.10,768,451, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 62/690,003 filed on Jun. 26, 2018, the contents of all of which areincorporated fully herein by reference.

FIELD

The subject matter disclosed herein generally relates to eyewear and,more particularly, to eyewear having diffusers to achieve a desiredvisual effect.

BACKGROUND

A large portion of the world's population wears eyewear. Eyewear mayinclude prescription glasses, sunglasses and smart glasses among others.Lighting may be beneficial for both the functionality and the aestheticsof eyewear. Lighting alone, however, may not achieve the desiredfunctionality and aesthetics.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an eyewear example including electroniccomponents and a support structure supporting the electronic components.

FIG. 1B is a top view of the eyewear example of FIG. 1A illustrating aregion defined by the eyewear for receiving a head of a user wearing theeyewear.

FIG. 1C is block diagram of the electronic components in the eyewearexample of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2A is a front view of the LED indicator in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2B is a side layer view of the LED indicator in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2C is a perspective layer view of the LED indicator in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2D is another perspective layer view of the LED indicator in FIG.1A.

FIG. 2E is an example of an anisotropic diffuser for the LED indicatorin FIG. 1A to produce a comet-like effect.

FIG. 2F is an example of steps for constructing the LED indicator inFIG. 1A to produce a comet-like effect.

FIG. 3A is a top view of the eyewear example of FIG. 1A illustrating theoutput of an LED indicator directed towards the eye of the user.

FIG. 3B is a side layer view of a prism-like diffuser for the LEDindicator in FIG. 3A.

FIG. 4A is a flowchart showing an example of the manufacturing andinstallation of the diffuser into the eyewear.

FIG. 4B is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of theeyewear with a radial diffuser and a prism-like diffuser.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are setforth by way of examples in order to provide a thorough understanding ofthe relevant teachings. However, it should be apparent to those skilledin the art that such details are not necessary to practice the presentteachings. In other instances, a relatively high-level description,without detail, of well-known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry avoids unnecessarily obscuring aspects of the presentteachings.

The term “coupled” as used herein refers to any logical, optical,physical or electrical connection, link or the like by which signals orlight produced or supplied by one system element are imparted to anothercoupled element. Unless described otherwise, coupled elements or devicesare not necessarily directly connected to one another and may beseparated by intermediate components, elements or communication mediathat may modify, manipulate or carry the light or signals.

The orientations of the eyewear, associated components, and any devicesincorporating an LED such as shown in any of the drawings, are by way ofexample only, for illustration and discussion purposes. In operation,orientation of the eyewear may be in other directions suitable to theparticular application of the eyewear, for example up, down, sideways,or any other orientation. Also, any directional term, such as front,rear, inwards, outwards, towards, left, right, lateral, longitudinal,up, down, upper, lower, top, bottom and side, is exemplary, and notlimiting, as to direction or orientation.

Example eyewear has an optical element, electronic components, a supportstructure configured to support the optical element and the electroniccomponents, and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) coupled to the electroniccomponents and supported by the support structure. The LEDs position andorientation illuminates the support structure according to a desiredvisual effect.

Example methods for illuminating eyewear according to a desired visualeffect include detecting, by electronic components in a supportstructure of the eyewear, a trigger signal instructing the electroniccomponents to illuminate LEDs in the support structure. In response toreceiving the trigger, illuminating, by the electronic components, theLEDs in the support structure according to a desired visual effect.

In one example, lighting in accordance with the examples herein enablesthe eyewear to indicate functionality to the user and/or to bystandersin a unique way. This functionality may include, but is not limited to,indicating to the user and/or bystanders that the eyewear is capturingan image or capturing video (i.e., the lighting synchronizes with thecamera operation). In another example, lighting enables the eyewear todisplay a lighting pattern that is aesthetically pleasing to the userand/or the bystanders. In this example, users can customize a lightingpattern by selecting colors, flashing patterns, etc. The benefits oflighting are therefore both functionally and aesthetically desirable toeyewear users. As used herein, the term “eyewear” refers to any smartoptical device having a support structure worn by a user including butnot limited to smart glasses, smart goggles, and display screens.

FIG. 1A depicts a front perspective view of example eyewear 12. Theillustrated eyewear 12 includes a support structure 13 that has temples14A and 14B and a frame 16. Eyewear 12 additionally include articulatedjoints 18A and 18B, electronic components 20A and 20B, and core wires22A, 22B and 24.

Support structure 13 supports one or more optical elements within afield of view of a user when worn by the user. For example, frame 16supports the one or more optical elements. As used herein, the term“optical elements” refers to lenses, transparent pieces of glass orplastic, projectors, screens, displays and other devices for presentingvisual images or through which a user perceives visual images. In anembodiment, respective temples 14A and 14B connect to frame 16 atrespective articulated joints 18A and 18B. The illustrated temples 14Aand 14B are elongate members having core wires 22A and 22B extendinglongitudinally therein.

Temple 14A is illustrated in a wearable condition and temple 14B isillustrated in a collapsed condition in FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG. 1A,articulated joint 18A connects temple 14A to a right end portion 26A offrame 16. Similarly, articulated joint 18B connects temple 14B to a leftend portion 26B of frame 16. The right end portion 26A of frame 16includes a housing that carries electronic components 20A therein, andleft end portion 26B includes a housing that carries electroniccomponents 20B therein.

A plastics material or other material embeds core wire 22A, whichextends longitudinally from adjacent articulated joint 18A toward asecond longitudinal end of temple 14A. Similarly, the plastics materialor other material also embeds core wire 22B, which extendslongitudinally from adjacent articulated joint 18B toward a secondlongitudinal end of temple 14B. The plastics material or other materialadditionally embeds core wire 24, which extends from the right endportion 26A (terminating adjacent electronic components 20A) to left endportion 26B (terminating adjacent electronic components 20B).

Support structure 13 carries electronic components 20A and 20B (e.g., byeither or both of temple(s) 14A, 14B and/or frame 16). Electroniccomponents 20A and 20B include a power source, power and communicationrelated circuitry, communication devices, display devices, a computer, amemory, modules, and/or the like (not shown). Electronic components 20Aand 20B may also include a camera/microphone 10 for capturing imagesand/or videos, and indicator LEDs 11 (described in more detail in otherfigures) indicating the operational state of eyewear 12 to any observersin proximity to the user wearing the eyewear (e.g., LEDs 11 illuminateto let observers know they are being recorded).

In one example, temples 14A and 14B and frame 16 are constructed of aplastics material, cellulosic plastic (e.g., cellulosic acetate), aneco-plastic material, a thermoplastic material, or the like, with corewires 22A, 22B and 24 embedded therein. Core wires 22A, 22B and 24provide structural integrity to support structure 13 (i.e., temple(s)14A, 14B and/or frame 16). Additionally, core wires 22A, 22B and/or 24act as a heat sink to transfer heat generated by electronic components20A and 20B away therefrom so as to reduce the likelihood of localizedheating adjacent electronic components 20A and 20B. As such, core wires22A, 22B and/or 24 thermally couple to the heat source to provide a heatsink for the heat source. Core wires 22A and 22B and/or 24 includerelatively flexible conductive metal or metal alloy material such as oneor more of an aluminum, an alloy of aluminum, alloys of nickel-silver,and a stainless steel, for example.

Support structure 13 defines a region (e.g., region 52 (FIG. 1B) definedby frame 12 and temples 14A and 14B) for receiving a portion 52 (e.g.,the main portion) of the head of the user. The defined region(s) are oneor more regions containing at least a portion of the head of a user thatare encompassed by, surrounded by, adjacent, and/or near the supportstructure when the user is wearing eyewear 12. Eyewear 12 may alsoinclude light emitting diodes (LEDs) (not shown) for illuminatingsupport structure 13 and internal circuit boards for coupling to theelectronic components and LEDs.

In addition, eyewear 12 may include other LED indicators (not shown)installed at one or more locations throughout frame 16 and/or temples14A and 14B. For example, an LED indicator may be near the housing ofelectronics 20B to project information to the eye of the user. These LEDindicators may be electrically coupled to electronics 20A and/or 20B(e.g., through one or more flexible printed circuit boards (FPCBs)).

FPCBs (not shown), are routed through various portions of frame 16 andtemples 14A and 14B to electrically couple these electronics 20A and 20Bto the LED indicators. The positions of the LED indicators provide a wayto convey information to observers as well as the user wearing theeyewear.

FPCBs include one or more electrical traces (not shown) for routingelectrical signals between the electronic components and the LEDs. Amolding process may embed these FPCBs into the frame and temples ofeyewear 12 during manufacturing. For example, during a first shot of atwo-shot molding process, an injection-molding device injects plasticinto a mold to form the front half of frame 16 and/or temple 14A. Afterforming the front halves, a robotic device may insert and position theFPCBs and other electronic components (e.g., the LEDs) within the moldat locations with respect to the front halves. During a second shot ofthe two-shot molding process, the injection molding device injects moreplastic into the mold to cover the components and form the back half offrame 16 or temple 14A such that the FPCBs and electronics are embeddedbetween the front and back halves of frame 16 and/or temple 14A. Afterforming the frame and both temples using the molding process, thetemples are mechanically connected to the frame (e.g., with screws) toform the finished eyewear 12.

Wires, PCBs, and FPCBs throughout the eyewear accomplish the variouselectrical couplings between controller 100 and the other electroniccomponents including the LED indicators. These electrical couplings arerouted through various portions of frame 16 and/or temples 14A and 14Bduring the manufacturing (e.g., two-shot molding) process. Manufacturingof eyewear 12 fully embeds these electrical couplings in the eyewearsuch that they may or may not be visible to the user based on theopacity of the manufacturing material.

FIG. 1C is a block diagram of example electronic components 20A and 20Bcoupled to LED indicators 108. The illustrated electronic components 20Aand 20B include controller 100 (e.g., lower power processor, imageprocessor, etc.) for controlling the various devices in eyewear 12;wireless module (e.g., Bluetooth™) 102 for facilitating communicationbetween eyewear 12 and a client device (e.g., smartphone not shown);power circuit 104 (e.g., battery, filter, etc.) for powering eyewear 12;flash storage 106 for storing data (e.g., images, video, imageprocessing software, etc.); LED indicators 108 (e.g., multicolored LEDs)for presenting information and aesthetic characteristics to the userand/or bystanders; button 110 (e.g., momentary push button) fortriggering eyewear 12 to capture images/video; and camera/microphone 112for capturing images/video and sound.

Wireless module 102 may couple with a client device 50 such as asmartphone, tablet, phablet, laptop computer, desktop computer,networked appliance, access point device, or any other such devicecapable of connecting with wireless module 102. Bluetooth, Bluetooth LE,Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi direct, a cellular modem, and a near field communicationsystem, as well as multiple instances of any of these systems, forexample, may implement these connections to enable communication therebetween. For example, communication between the devices may facilitatetransfer of software updates, images, videos, lighting schemes, and/orsound between eyewear 12 and the client device (e.g., smartphone orother personal computing device uploading one or more lighting schemesto eyewear 12).

Camera/microphone 112 for capturing the images/video may include digitalcamera elements such as a charge-coupled device, a lens, or any otherlight capturing elements for capturing image data and converting into anelectrical signal(s). Camera/microphone 112 may additionally oralternatively include a microphone having a transducer for convertingsound into an electrical signal(s).

Button 110 may be a physical button that, when pressed, sends a userinput signal to controller 100. Controller 100 may interpret pressingbutton 110 for a predetermined period of time (e.g., three seconds) as arequest to turn on eyewear 12 (e.g., transition eyewear 12 from an offor sleep mode of operation to a low power mode of operation).

Controller 100 is a controller that controls the electronic components.For example, controller 100 includes circuitry to receive signals fromcamera 112 and process those signals into a format suitable for storagein memory 106. Controller 100 powers on and boots to operate in a normaloperational mode, or to enter a sleep mode. In one example, controller100 includes a microprocessor integrated circuit (IC) configured forprocessing sensor data from camera 112, along with volatile memory usedby the microprocessor to operate. The memory may store software code forexecution by controller 100.

Each of the electronic components require power to operate. Powercircuit 104 may include a battery, power converter, and distributioncircuitry (not shown). The battery may be a rechargeable battery such aslithium-ion or the like. Power converter and distribution circuitry mayinclude electrical components for filtering and/or converting voltagesfor powering the various electronic components.

LED indicators 108, under control of controller 100 convey informationto the user and/or to bystanders. For example, controller 100 mayilluminate LED indicators 108 each time the user presses button 110 toindicate that eyewear 12 is recording images and/or video and/or sound.

Locations of LED indicators 108 may include the nose pad, frame, ortemple of eyewear 12. Controller 100 of eyewear 12 may automaticallycontrol the operation of LED indicators 108. In one example, LEDindicators 108 (positioned in the frame of eyewear 12) may be white LEDsthat controller 100 controls to emit a “comet-like” pattern indicating(e.g., to bystanders) that the camera is active. In other examples, thelighting pattern may include different colors across the color spectrum,flashing or blinking patterns, and/or duration of illumination.Controller 100 or a personal computing device (e.g., smartphone)controls the lighting pattern of LED indicators 108 based on a lightingpattern selected by an application, a user, or a combination thereof.For example, if the user presses button 110 to capture a video, this maytrigger the controller to illuminate the LED indicators 108 in adistinctive manner. Controller 100 may also control LED indicators 108to illuminate according to a distinctive lighting pattern when capturingvideo. This functionality acts as an indicator to let bystanders knowthe camera is recording them, and provides the aesthetic characteristicsdesired by the user.

In another example, LED indicators 108 may be positioned on the insideof the frame of the eyewear to project light towards the user's eye.This information may indicate the status of eyewear functionality (e.g.,that images are being recorded, eyewear is wirelessly communicating withanother device, memory capacity, battery charge, etc.).

Wires, PCBs and FPCBs throughout the eyewear accomplish the variouselectrical couplings between controller 100 and the other electroniccomponents including LEDs 108 shown in FIG. 1C. These electricalcouplings route through various portions of frame 16 and/or temples 14Aand 14B during the manufacturing (e.g., two-shot molding) process. Themanufacturing process fully embeds the electrical couplings into eyewear12 such that they may or may not be visible to the user based on theopacity of the manufacturing material.

As described above, LED indicators 11 are located on the front of theeyewear frame to alert bystanders that the camera is active. FIG. 2A isa front view of LED indicator 11 in FIG. 1A. The outer circumference ofindicator 11 includes a number (e.g., 15, 24, etc.) of LEDs 204 forminga radial (e.g., circular) pattern. LEDs 204 are physically mounted andelectrically coupled to a circuit board (not shown) located behindindicator 11. Although FIG. 2A shows a specific example of LEDs locatedin a radial pattern, it is noted that the radius and number of LEDs inthe radial pattern may be selected to achieve desiredfunctionality/aesthetics of indicator 11.

In addition to LEDs 204, indicator 11 also includes a transmission mask202. In one example, transmission mask 202 includes a light absorbingcoating placed on a cover lens (not shown) located in front of LEDs 204.For example, transmission mask 202 may have a pattern (e.g., black lightabsorbing paint) that is located in areas of the cover lens where it isdesirable to block the light from exiting the cover lens, and atransmission coating that is located above the LEDs where it isdesirable to allow the LED generated light to exit the cover lens. Thetransmission properties of the transmission coating may allow forcomplete or partial transmission of light through the cover lens (e.g.,15% transmission which contributes to hiding the LEDs when they areoff). In other cases, the transmission coating may have variabletransmission to help reduce LED non-uniformities.

In order to achieve a desirable visual effect, indicator 11 (see FIG.2B) also includes a light diffuser to diffuse light emitted from LEDs222. In a first example, the position of the light diffuser is betweenLEDs 222 and LED window 226 (see light diffuser 225). In a secondexample, the position of the light diffuser is between LED window 226and cover lens 228 (see light diffuser 227). In a third example, LEDwindow 226 may be sandwiched between both light diffusers 225 and 227.In a fourth example, LED window 226 may itself be a light diffuser(e.g., an additive can be added to the clear LED window). In a fifthexample, LED cover lens 228 may itself be a light diffuser (e.g., anadditive can be added to the cover lens). Either of these configurationsprovide a desirable visual effect for observers and for the user bydiffusing the light emitted from LEDs 222. Further details of thestructure of indicator 11 are shown in FIGS. 2B, 2C and 2D.

Specifically, FIG. 2B shows a side layer view 220 of the LED indicatorin FIG. 1A. In this example, the indicator includes multiple layers. Thelayers include a PCB layer comprising PCB 224, an LED layer comprisingLEDs 222, a window layer comprising LED window 226, a cover layerincluding cover lens 228, and a diffuser layer comprising diffuser(s)225, 227 or a combination of the two. Alternatively, the window layer orthe cover layer may have light diffusion capabilities. The structure ofthe indicator layers from the innermost layer (layer furthest towardsthe inside of frame 16) to the outermost layer (layer furthest towardsthe outside of frame 16) is set forth below. PCB 224 is located in aposition towards the inside of eyewear frame 16. LEDs 222 physicallymount to PCB 224 (e.g., in a radial pattern at a set radius 206) and areelectrically coupled to electrical traces (not shown) on PCB 224. It isnoted that PCB 224 is also connected to FPCBs (not shown) to connectindicator 11 to other electronic components (e.g., controller) internalto the eyewear. Positioned in front of LEDs 222 is LED window 226 (e.g.,clear plastic). LED window 226 (e.g., which may have a radial shape)protects LEDs 222, while allowing the LEDs to freely emit light.Positioned in front and/or in back of LED window 226 is diffuser(s) 225and/or 227 to diffuse the light emitted from LEDs 222. The diffusers mayhave a radial shape in order to cover the radially positioned LEDs.Positioned in front of LED window 226 and/or diffuser 227 is cover lens228 for protecting the electronic components. Cover lens 228 is alsocoated with transmission mask 229 to allow and/or block light fromexiting certain regions of the cover lens. As described above, thediffusers 225 and/or 227 may be replaced by adding diffusioncapabilities (e.g., additives) to LED window 226 or cover lens 228.

FIG. 2C is a cutaway perspective layer view 230 of the LED indicator 11in FIG. 2A. As shown in FIG. 2C, PCB 224 and LED window 226 and coverlens 228 are cutaway. For clarity, diffusers 225/227 and transmissionmask 229 are not shown. Yet another cutaway view 250 is shown in FIG. 2D(again, diffusers 225/227 and transmission mask 229 are not shown forclarity). Although diffusers 225/227 and transmission mask 229 are notshown in FIG. 2C or 2D, they may be included in the LED indicator asshown in FIG. 2B.

The optical properties of diffuser 225/227 diffuse the light emittedfrom LEDs 222 in a desired emission pattern. One example of an emissionpattern may be a “comet-like” pattern. The performance of thiscomet-like pattern is shown in view 260 of FIG. 2E.

Indicator 266 in FIG. 2E is similar in structure to the indicators shownin FIGS. 2A-2D. For example, indicator 266 includes a PCB layer, LEDlayer, and a diffuser layer. The diffuser layer of indicator 266transforms discrete light emitted from LEDs 222 into a comet-likepattern where a controller sequentially turns the LEDs (not shown)ON/OFF in a radial pattern (e.g., counterclockwise as shown). Forexample, discrete LEDs 222 shown in FIG. 2A may be controlled in thefollowing manner. A select number of LEDS (e.g., 12) represent thelength of the comet. The lead LED of the select LEDs is the brightestand represents the head of the comet. The remaining LEDs in the cometget dimmer as they reach the final LED which represents the tail of the“comet”. This is illustrated in FIG. 2E, where the lead LED (e.g., LEDat 12 o'clock) is the brightest, the middle LED (e.g., LED at 4 o'clockis medium bright), and the tail LED (e.g., LED at 9 o'clock) is thedimmest. The other LEDs (e.g., LEDs between 9 o'clock and 12 o'clock)that are not part of the “comet” and are not emitting (e.g., they areblack). During operation in this example, the comet moves in acounterclockwise manner around the radius of the indicator bysequentially turning the LEDs ON/OFF at a predetermined brightness. Thespeed of orbit (how fast the comet travels around the indicator), thebrightness, and the size of the comet are all controllable by thecontroller (e.g., the controller controls how many LEDs are illuminated,the brightness of the LEDs and the speed at which the LEDs are turnedON/OFF).

As is shown in FIG. 2E, the comet-like pattern is blended due to thediffuser such that the light from individual LEDs is not decipherable(i.e., the light from adjacent LEDs mixes together in a uniform manner).This visual effect is achieved by a light diffuser.

FIG. 2F shows an example for constructing an LED indicator to producethe comet-like pattern. Step 1 shows the discrete emission of a singleLED light source that may be included in the indicator. Step 2 shows theoptical characteristics of an anisotropic diffuser where arrows 262 and264 represent the diffusion pattern. Arrow 262 represents the diffusionpattern along the radial path, whereas arrow 264 represents thediffusion pattern along an axis that intersects the radial path. Thesearrows indicate that the diffuser spreads the light with brighterintensity on one side resulting in the comet-like pattern shown Step 3.This anisotropic diffusion pattern may be repeated around the radialpath such that the intersection of arrow 264 and arrow 262 is located infront of each LED in the indicator (e.g., an intersection point islocated at 12 o'clock, 1'oclock . . . 11 o'clock, as shown in FIG. 2A).Alternatively, the diffusion pattern may only be placed in front ofselect LEDs (e.g., intersections at 12 o'clock, 3 o'clock, 6 o'clock and9 o'clock). As shown in Step 4, the transmission mask (e.g.,transmission ring aligned with the LEDs) is added such that light fromthe LEDs exits the cover lens only at desired locations and is blockedfrom exiting the cover lens at other locations (e.g., the darklocations). A center region may also allow light to exit when a cameraand/or sensor is included in the center of indicator 11. As shown inStep 5, as the LEDs are sequentially turned ON/OFF in a radial pattern(e.g., LED at 11 o'clock is ON while the rest of the LEDs are OFF), acomet-like pattern is achieved (e.g., a comet with a head having a sharpbright edge on one side and a tail that is less bright on the oppositeside). A standard isotropic diffuser could not achieve this result, asthe head of the comet would not have a sharp bright edge.

In addition to the anisotropic diffuser, indicator 11 may also includewalls (not shown) between the respective LEDs to prevent light frombleeding from one LED section to another. This may help the comet have amore distinctive head.

The comet-like pattern shown in FIG. 2E is just one example of anemission pattern. Other emission patterns are possible using theanisotropic diffuser. For example, the diffuser could diffuse lightalong any axis (e.g., horizontal, vertical, diagonal) with respect tothe eyewear structure. In addition, other diffusers (e.g., prism-likediffusers) could be utilized to redirect light. These prism-likediffusers could redirect a light cone emitted from the LEDs at aspecific emission angle towards the observers or towards the user. Thisis illustrated in FIG. 3A, which shows a top view 300 of the eyewearexample of FIG. 1A illustrating the output of such an indicator.

As shown in FIG. 3A, indicator 302 may be positioned on the innersurface (e.g., frame 13) of the eyewear such that the LED(s) aredirected towards the user's eye 308. This indicator may include one ormore LEDs and a prism-like diffuser (not shown) to ensure that theemitted light pattern (i.e., the cone) is directed towards the user'seye 308. This is beneficial to ensuring that the user of the eyewearreceives information from the indicator, while ensuring that observersin proximity to the user do not perceive the light. This information mayinclude the status of certain eyewear functionality (e.g., recordingstatus, memory status, processing status, transmission status, batterystatus, software status, etc.). The desired emission pattern produced bythe prism-like diffuser in this example cone 304 shown by two solidlines which is more desirable than cone 306 which would be produced bythe LED alone (i.e., cone 304 produced by the prism-like diffuser isdirected (e.g., tilted) towards the user's eye 308, whereas cone 306emits some light through the lenses of the eyewear which is perceived byobservers). Block 301 shows a magnified view of cones 304 and 306produced by the prism-like diffuser and the LED alone respectively.

FIG. 3B is a side layer view 320 of a prism-like diffuser for the userindicator shown in FIG. 3A. As shown in FIG. 3B, the diffuser has twolayers. A first layer 321 is the bulk of the diffuser material, while asecond layer 322 is located on the diffuser surface. Second layer 322 iscomprised of micro-structures that are strategically located on thesurface of the diffuser to produce the desired diffusion pattern. Inthis example, the desired diffusion pattern is a cone of light that isdirected (e.g., tilted) towards the user's eye as shown in FIG. 3A. Thecone of light may have a specific emission angle range 326. For example,as light 323 emitted from the LEDs enters the diffuser, the light passesthrough layer 321 and into layer 322 where it diffuses according to thearrangement of the microstructures (e.g., light is bent). This producesa tilted light cone 326 defined by arrows 324 and 325 (i.e., light isemitted between these arrows). This light cone is tilted towards the eyeof the user and ensures that the light is not perceivable to the casualobserver.

FIGS. 2E and 3B show diffusion patterns for achieving a desired visualeffect. Although FIGS. 2E and 3B show specific examples of a radialanisotropic diffuser and a prism-like diffuser respectively, thediffuser could be designed as an axial diffuser to produce emissionpatterns that have different diffusion characteristics along any axis(e.g., radial, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, etc.) relative to theeyewear, the user or the observer.

FIG. 4A is a flowchart 400 showing an example of the manufacturing andinstallation of the diffuser (e.g., anisotropic, prism-like, axial,etc.). In step 402, the manufacturer or customer selects the diffusermaterial (e.g., polycarbonate sheet, etc.). The material is then cutinto a desired shape (e.g., circular, rectangular, etc.) in step 404.The microstructure layer is then created on the diffuser surface in step406. The microstructure layer may be created by strategically injectingmicrostructures onto the diffuser surface, etching microstructures ontothe diffuser surface, embossing microstructures onto the diffusersurface, or any other equivalent process. For the creation of themicrostructures, in addition to injecting, etching, embossing, theycould also be created by molding, or replication from a master using aholographic process. In one example, the micro-structures could bemicro-lenses that have non-axially symmetric profiles, or holographicpatterns.

The size, shape, position and density of the microstructures has adirect effect on the diffusion properties of the diffuser. For example,more microstructures may be formed on the surface of the diffuser wherelight should be most attenuated, while fewer microstructures may beformed on the surface of the diffuser where light should be leastattenuated. In another example, steps 404 and 406 could be reversed. Forexample, multiple diffusion patterns could be formed on the surface of adiffuser sheet, and then individually cut out for installation.

In step 408, the diffuser is installed into the eyewear. For example, ifthe diffuser is similar to the radial diffuser shown in FIG. 2E, thediffuser could be mounted to the front of the LEDs, and then molded intothe frames of the eyewear along with the other electronic components.The diffuser could be the outermost external layer or could be protectedby a clear plastic window. In either example, the diffuser diffuses thelight emitted by the LEDs in the designed radial pattern.

Operation of the eyewear having both a radial indicator on the outersurface of the frames similar to FIG. 1A, and user indicator on theinner surface of the frames similar to FIG. 3A is described withreference to flowchart 450 in FIG. 4B. A trigger signal controls theLEDs in the radial indicator and the user indicator. A controller 100automatically generates the trigger signal based on an application, orin response to user input (e.g., the user pressing a button 110 on theeyewear). For example, in step 452, the controller 100 determines if atrigger signal for illuminating the radial indicator is received (i.e.,if the user pressed a button to turn ON the radial indicator). If thecontroller receives the trigger signal, the controller 100 turns on theradial LEDs 108 in step 454. Due to the diffuser having a radialanisotropic pattern, the light from the LEDs 108 diffuses in a radialmanner.

If, however, the controller determines that the trigger signal is notfor the radial indicator, the process proceeds to step 456, where thecontroller 100 determines if a trigger signal for illuminating the userindicator is received (i.e., if the user pressed a button to turn ON theuser indicator). If the user indicator trigger signal is received, thecontroller 100 turns on the user indicator LEDs 108 in step 458. Due tothe diffuser having prism-like pattern, the light from the LEDs istilted accordingly.

The steps in FIGS. 4A and 4B may be performed by controller 100 of theelectronic components upon loading and executing software code orinstructions which are tangibly stored on a tangible computer readablemedium 106, such as on a magnetic medium, e.g., a computer hard drive,an optical medium, e.g., an optical disc, solid-state memory, e.g.,flash memory, or other storage media known in the art. Thus, any of thefunctionality performed by the controller described herein, such as thesteps in FIGS. 4A and 4B, may be implemented in software code orinstructions that are tangibly stored on a tangible computer readablemedium. Upon loading and executing such software code or instructions bythe controller, the controller may perform any of the functionality ofthe controller described herein, including the steps in FIGS. 4A and 4Bdescribed herein.

It will be understood that the terms and expressions used herein havethe ordinary meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions withrespect to their corresponding respective areas of inquiry and studyexcept where specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.Relational terms such as first and second and the like may be usedsolely to distinguish one entity or action from another withoutnecessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or orderbetween such entities or actions. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,”“includes,” “including,” or any other variation thereof, are intended tocover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article,or apparatus that comprises or includes a list of elements or steps doesnot include only those elements or steps but may include other elementsor steps not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method,article, or apparatus. An element preceded by “a” or “an” does not,without further constraints, preclude the existence of additionalidentical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus thatcomprises the element.

Unless otherwise stated, any and all measurements, values, ratings,positions, magnitudes, sizes, and other specifications that are setforth in this specification, including in the claims that follow, areapproximate, not exact. Such amounts are intended to have a reasonablerange that is consistent with the functions to which they relate andwith what is customary in the art to which they pertain. For example,unless expressly stated otherwise, a parameter value or the like mayvary by as much as +10% from the stated amount.

In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen thatvarious features are grouped together in various examples for thepurpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is notto be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed examplesrequire more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather,as the following claims reflect, the subject matter to be protected liesin less than all features of any single disclosed example. Thus, thefollowing claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as a separately claimed subjectmatter.

While the foregoing has described what are considered to be the bestmode and other examples, it is understood that various modifications maybe made therein and that the subject matter disclosed herein may beimplemented in various forms and examples, and that they may be appliedin numerous applications, only some of which have been described herein.It is intended by the following claims to claim any and allmodifications and variations that fall within the true scope of thepresent concepts.

1. Eyewear comprising: a controller; lenses; a support structureconfigured to be worn on a head of a user and to support the controllerand the lenses; a light source coupled to the controller and supportedby the support structure, the light source controlled by the controllerto indicate at least one of whether images are being recorded, whethervideo is being recorded, or whether sound is being recorded; and a lightdiffuser on a surface of the support structure, the light diffuserpositioned to diffuse light emitted by the light source usingmicrostructures and to redirect light emitted by the light source at aspecific emission angle towards an observer in proximity of the user. 2.The eyewear of claim 1, wherein the support structure comprises at leastone nose pad, a frame, at least one temple, and a camera, and whereinthe light source comprises light emitting diode (LED) indicators locatedon at least one of the at least one nose pad, the frame, or the at leastone temple.
 3. The eyewear of claim 2, wherein the controllerautomatically controls operation of the LED indicators to emit light ina predetermined pattern.
 4. The eyewear of claim 3, wherein thepredetermined pattern is a comet-like pattern where the controllersequentially actuates the LED indicators in a radial pattern indicatingto the observer in proximity of the user that the camera is active. 5.The eyewear of claim 4, wherein a select number of the LED indicatorsrepresent a length of a comet, a first LED indicator of the selectnumber of LED indicators is brightest and represents a head of thecomet, and remaining LED indicators of the select number of LEDindicators get dimmer as they approach a final LED indicator of theselect number of LED indicators.
 6. The eyewear of claim 5, wherein thecontroller controls a speed of how fast the comet moves around the LEDindicators, brightness of the LED indicators, and a size of the comet.7. The eyewear of claim 3, wherein the controller changes a color oflight emitted by the LED indicators in accordance with the predeterminedpattern.
 8. The eyewear of claim 3, wherein the controller changes lightemitted by the LED indicators to flash or blink in accordance with thepredetermined pattern.
 9. The eyewear of claim 3, wherein the controllerchanges a duration of light emission by the LED indicators in accordancewith the predetermined pattern.
 10. The eyewear of claim 3, wherein thecontroller receives a control signal from a personal computing device tocontrol a lighting pattern emitted by the LED indicators based on alighting pattern selected by at least one of an application on thepersonal computing device or a user of the personal computing device.11. The eyewear of claim 3, wherein the support structure furthercomprises a button, and wherein the controller illuminates the LEDindicators to illuminate in accordance with the predetermined pattern inresponse to at least one of a press of the button to capture a video orwhen capturing the video.
 12. The eyewear of claim 2, wherein the lightdiffuser comprises a prism-like diffuser that redirects a light coneemitted from the LED indicators at a specific emission angle towards theobserver in proximity of the user.
 13. The eyewear of claim 2, whereinthe LED indicators are disposed in a radial pattern, and wherein thelight diffuser provides an anisotropic diffusion pattern around theradial pattern of the LED indicators.
 14. The eyewear of claim 13,wherein the light diffuser provides a diffusion pattern that is placedin front of select LED indicators in the radial pattern of the LEDindicators.
 15. The eyewear of claim 1, wherein the light diffuser isanisotropic and diffuses light from the light source along an axis withrespect to the support structure.
 16. The eyewear of claim 1, whereinthe light diffuser comprises a first diffuser layer and a seconddiffuser layer adjacent the first diffuser layer, wherein the seconddiffuser layer comprises micro-structures that produce a tilted lightcone.
 17. An eyewear control method for illuminating eyewear to be wornby a user, the method comprising: detecting, by a controller in asupport structure of the eyewear, a trigger signal instructing thecontroller to illuminate at least one light source supported by thesupport structure to indicate at least one of whether images are beingrecorded, whether video is being recorded, or whether sound is beingrecorded; and in response to receiving the trigger signal, illuminating,by the controller, the at least one light source in the supportstructure such that the at least one light source emits light through alight diffuser on a surface of the support structure, the light diffuserpositioned to diffuse light emitted by the at least one light sourceusing microstructures and to redirect light emitted by the at least onelight source at a specific emission angle towards an observer inproximity of the user.
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprisingautomatically controlling, by the controller, operation of the at leastone light source to emit light in a predetermined pattern.
 19. Themethod of claim 18, wherein the at least one light source comprises aplurality of light sources, further comprising sequentially turningon/off, by the controller, the plurality of light sources in a radialpattern indicating to the observer in proximity of the user that acamera of the eyewear is active.
 20. The method of claim 18, furthercomprising changing, by the controller, at least one of a color of lightemitted by the at least one light source in accordance with thepredetermined pattern, a flashing or blinking of the at least one lightin accordance with the predetermined pattern, or a duration of lightemission by the at least one light in accordance with the predeterminedpattern.